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Penguins Send 13 Players to AHL, Trim Roster to 29

As anticipated, Pittsburgh Penguins’ General Manager Ray Shero announced the next round of training camp cuts today, sending 13 players to the AHL affiliate Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins.  The 13 players sent to Wilkes-Barre includes forwards Kris Beech, Ryan Stone, Adam Henrich, Aaron Boogaard, Tim Wallace, Jonathan Filewich, David Gove and Christopher Minard.  It also includes defensemen Deryk Engelland, T.J. Kemp, Ben Lovejoy and Joey Mormina, as well as goaltender David Brown.  The cuts trimmed the Penguins’ training camp roster to 29 players

Of the 29 remaining players, the Penguins have retained 16 forwards, 10 defensemen and 3 goaltenders.  That list includes propsects Janne Pesonen, Connor James, Paul Bissonnette, Bill Thomas, Alex Goligoski, Danny Richmond, and John Curry.  With surgery/injuries affecting the normal Penguins’ defensive lineup, Defensemen Alex Goligoski and/or Danny Richmond could find themselves on the roster as the season starts.  There is potential for one or two positions on wing being open for competition, as well, as training camp and pre-season hockey winds down. 

The current roster includes the following players (by natural position,  not necessarily the position they are being played)

• Left Wing
  • Ruslan Fedotenko
  • Jeff Taffe
  • Matt Cooke
  • Janne Pesonen
  • Paul Bissonnette (Converted from D)
  • Connor James
  • David Gove
• Center
  • Sidney Crosby
  • Evgeni Malkin
  • Jordan Staal
  • Tyler Kennedy
  • Max Talbot
• Right Wing
  • Miroslav Satan
  • Petr Sykora
  • Pascal Dupuis
  • Eric Godard
  • William Thomas
• Defense
  • Sergei Gonchar
  • Ryan Whitney
  • Mark Eaton
  • Hal Gill
  • Kris Letang
  • Brooks Orpik
  • Darryl Sydor
  • Rob Scuderi 
  • Alex Goligoski
  • Danny Richmond
• Goal
  • Marc-Andre Fleury
  • Dany Sabourin
  • John Curry

The Penguins’ prospects will have two more opportunities to impress the hockey staff before the team leaves for Sweden on Saturday night.  It is uncertain whether the Penguins will make the final roster cuts before they leave.  While I wouldn’t be surprised by a few cuts, I don’t expect they will cut to the final roster since they will still have several more days of practice in Sweden and a final pre-season game in Finland on October 2nd before the season starts in Stockholm on October 4th.  I expect that the Penguins coaching staff will keep their options open and guard against any late injuries while on the road overseas.  Therefore, I expect at least 1 or 2 extra forwards and defensemen to make the trip to Sweden.

The Penguins return to Mellon Arena on Wednesday night to host the Toronto Maple Leafs.  The roster for the game has not yet been released.  The game will be aired nationally on TSN.

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Penguins Announce Monday Night Lineup

The Pittsburgh Penguins continue their pre-season play on Monday night as they play Game #2 against the Lightning in Tampa Bay.  While the Pens played most of their A-List talent in Saturday night’s loss to the Lightning, they will field a much different team for Monday night’s game.  Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Miroslav Satan, Jordan Staal, Petr Sykora, Brooks Orpik, Darryl Sydor, and Marc-Andre Fleury will all get the night off while more Penguins’ prospects will get an opportunity to impress the hockey staff.

Winger Ruslan Fedotenko will make his debut as a Penguin on Monday night.  Joining him on the ice will be forwards Janne Pesonen, Ryan Stone, Paul Bissonnette, Max Talbot, Jeff Taffe, Kris Beech, Adam Heinrich, Bill Thomas, Tyler Kennedy, Eric Godard, and Aaron Boogard.  On defense, the Penguins will bring Mark Eaton, Hal Gill, Danny Richmond, Kris Letang, Deryk Engelland and Alex Goligoski.  Dany Sabourin and John Curry will be the goaltending duo.

The lines have not been announced and one hardly knows what Michel Therrien might do, but based on skill sets and training camp pairings I would expect something like the following:

1. Fedotenko – Talbot – Kennedy
2. Stone – Taffe – Pesonen
3. Heinrich – Beech – Godard
4. Bissonnette – Thomas – Boogard

With the defensive pairings possibly as follows:

1. Eaton – Letang
2. Richmond – Goligoski
3. Engelland – Gill

The Lightning Insider is reporting Tampa Bay’s planned roster for Monday night’s game.  It includes forwards Ryan Malone, Steven Stamkos, Radim Vrbata, Vaclav Prospal, Jussi Jokinen, Evgeny Artyukhin. David Koci, Zenon Konopka, Jason Ward, Dana Tyrell, Paul Szczechura and Michel Ouellet.  On defense, the Lightning will play Shane O’Brien, Mike Lundin, Adrej Meszaros, Ty Wishart, Janne Niskala, and Matt Carle.  Coach Melrose plans to play Olaf Kolzig in net with Riku Helenius as backup, as he rotates each of his goalies through 2 full pre-season games. 

After Monday night’s game against the Lightning, the Penguins will return to Mellon Arena to take on the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday night.

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Penguins Lose Pre-Season Opener in Shootout

The Pittsburgh Penguins battled back from a 3-1 defecit, but ultimately lost to the Tampa Bay Lightning in a shootout when #1 draft pick Steven Stamkos scored the deciding goal on Saturday night.  The Lightning, under new head coach and former ESPN color analyst Barry Melrose, sat many of its veterans for the pre-season opener, including Vinny Lecavalier and Martin St Louis.  Also missing from the lineup were former Penguins’ Ryan Malone, Gary Roberts, Mark Recchi, and Adam Hall.   Pittsburgh played many of its young stars, to include Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal and Marc-Andre Fleury.  They also played newcomer Miroslav Satan, but sat Ruslan Fedotenko in favor of Janne Pesonen who picked up an assist.

The game started with Jordan Staal netting a quick goal just 51 seconds into the first period.  Staal’s goal was assisted by Evgeni Malkin and rookie defesneman Ben Lovejoy.  It was the only goal of the first period as Marc-Andre Fleury turned aside all 10 of the Lightning shots.  The Penguins put up 9-shots.  Defensemen Sergei Gonchar left the game in the first and didn’t return after being hit by 6′6″ heavyweight David Koci.  Gonchar will be evaluated today, but reportedly suffered a shoulder injury.  In response, Eric Godard took Koci’s number and squared off with him in the games’ first fight of the night at 11:54, sending both to the box for 5-minutes (Georges Laraque take note, wherever you are). 

In the second, Marc-Andre Fleury and the Penguins gave up 3-straight goals to the Lightning as Janne Niskala, Wyatt Smith, and Brandon Bochenski all converted at even strength in a span of just under 5-minutes.  The Penguins finally hit back late in the second as Petr Sykora notched a 5-on-3 power play goal at 15:18 to draw within 1.  Miroslav Satan and Jordan Staal picked up the assists.  Ryan Stone stepped into a fight early in the period, but was outmatched against the heavier Zenon Konopka.  After a slow start to the period, the Penguins finished by outscoring the Lightning 12-9. 

In the 3rd period, it was Petr Sykora striking on the power play again as he notched his 2nd of the night at 10:11 during 5-on-4 play.  Janne Pesonen and Alex Goligoski were credited with the assists on the play.  At 12:51, Kris Beach was given a 5-minute major and a game misconduct penalty for boarding, setting up an extended short-handed situation for the Penguins.  However at 17:07, Sidney Crosby notched the go-ahead goal with an unassisted, short-hander.  Unfortunately, with just over a minute to go, Brandon Bochenski scored his second of the night to tie it back up.  Shots were 9-8 Tampa. 

After a scoreless overtime period, the game went to the shootout.  Jussi Jokinen and  Steven Stamkos both converted on the shootout, while Miroslave Satan and Evgeni Malkin were thwarted to give the Lightning the win. 

 

• NHL Official Game Summary
• NHL Official Game Rosters 
• VIDEO:  Janne Pesonen Interview
• VIDEO:  Sidney Crosby Interview
• VIDEO:  Coach Therrien 

The Penguins match up against the Lightning again on Monday night in Tampa Bay.

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Pittsburgh Penguins 2008 Training Camp Preview

After a short summer break, the Pittsburgh Penguins are ready to hit the ice again as they get back to training camp this week.  Over the summer, the team saw some significant complexion changes with the exodus of some key role players.  Yet, despite the loss of Marian Hossa, Ryan Malone, Gary Roberts, Ty Conklin, Jarkko Ruutu, Georges Laraque and Adam Hall, the Penguins have kept their young core of stars intact and have back-filled the losses with some quality, proven role players.  Among the new player acquisitions are Miroslov Satan (RW), Ruslan Fedetenko (LW), Matt Cooke (LW) and Eric Godard (RW).   The Penguins also have depth in their organizational talent pool and added to it by bringing in some new prospects to include Janne Pesonen, last season’s leading scorer in the Finnish Elite League.  So as the Penguins head into training camp, what should you look for in terms of new talent on the team?

Goaltending

There is no doubt who holds the top spot for the Penguins in net, as Marc-Andre Fleury silenced the critics last season with an outstanding run after returning from his extended high ankle injury.  The question will be how soon he finds his form this season, as he has historically had slow starts.  The big surprise last season was the play of Ty Conklin, claiming the #2 spot away from Dany Sabourin after Fleury went on the injured reserve for a couple of months.  To his credit, Dany Sabourin didn’t play all that bad, but Conklin was flat out spectacular and stole the stage from Sabourin.  One could even argue that Conklin’s play was partially responsible for Fleury ratcheting up his game to re-establish his top spot upon his return.  With Ty Conklin now off the roster, Dany Sabourin has the opportunity to re-establish himself as the backup netminder.  But the Penguins will likely be evaluating their options during camp with some netminding depth in the system.  In my opinion, the only potential challenger for Sabourin would be John Curry.  Curry stepped into the void left by Ty Conklin in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, and put together an impressive 24-12 run in the regular season.  He went on to backstop the baby Penguins’ 14-9 run into the Calder Cup Finals.  I expect Sabourin will prevail out of camp, but don’t be surpised if Curry finds his way into an NHL game later in the season.

Defense 

The Penguins defensive corps is the one area that remains largely unchanged from last season.  The Penguins have been handed a significant challenge, however, with Ryan Whitney leaving the lineup for a minimum of 3-months (possibly up to 5 months) as he recovers from off-season foot surgery.  Whitney’s role as an offensive defensemen will be missed, and will likely be an area that the Penguins look to address in training camp.  The Penguins will be getting Mark Eaton back into the lineup after missing most of last season with a torn ACL, but Eaton’s forte is in defense and not in offensive production.  There may also be some lingering questions about his durability after 2 back-to-back injury shortened seasons.  Perhaps Kris Letang will find this as an opportunity to increase his offensive game, but he still needs to focus on perfecting his defensive game.  Perhaps Darryl Sydor, rumored to be seeking a trade out of Pittsburgh, will be able to find the niche he was looking for by stepping up his offensive game.  However, I still expect the veteran to leave Pittsburgh at some point this season.  The most likely scenario in my mind will be for Alex Goligoski to find his way into the lineup coming out of training camp.  Goligoski had an impressive year with Wilkes-Barre last season posting 38-points (10G, 28A) in 70 games with a +15 rating.  He also netted 28-points (4G, 24A) in 23 playoff games with a +5 rating.  He also made his NHL debut last season, getting 2-assists in his 3 outings.   Other defensemen to watch at camp would be Alex Grant, TJ Kemp, Deryk Engelland, and Ben Lovejoy.

Offense

The Penguins offense remains strong despite the loss of wingers Marian Hossa and Ryan Malone.  In particular, they are rock solid down the center with Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal and Maxime Talbot.  With Hossa and Malone out of the lineup, along with Roberts, Hall, Laraque, and Ruutu, the Penguins will use training camp to assess and shore up the wings.  They will look to off-season acqusitions Miroslav Satan and Ruslan Fedetenko to fill the void in the top lines.  It remains to be seen how well they will mesh with the talented Penguins’ centermen or how long it will take for the chemistry to develop, but it seems likely that they will flourish alongside Crosby and/or Malkin.  Elsewhere on wing, the Penguins have retained Petr Sykora, Jeff Taffe, Pascal Dupuis, and Tyler Kennedy, and have added newcomers Eric Godard and Matt Cooke.  The latter two were acquired to backfill the loss of Georges Laraque and Jarkko Ruutu.  Look for the Penguins management to really test out the combinations in camp, and to evaluate the talent they have within the system to find a set of wingers that work.  Perhaps the biggest and most anticipated wild card is Janne Pesonen, the Left Wing top scorer from the Finnish Elite League.  He will likely be the center of much attention and speculation as to a potential bid in the lineup.  The Penguins also have several NHL-tested prospects as a result of last season’s extensive injuries that will have a viable opportunity to break into the lineup.  This includes Connor James, Jonathan Filewich, Chris Minard, and Ryan Stone.  I would expect as many as 2-3 lower line wing positions in play going into training camp, with the burden being on the prospects to prove their case for being in the lineup. 

After last season’s challenges and ultimate success, I anxiously look forward to the start of the season.  The changes in the complexion of this team add to the excitement and uncertainty of what the new season will bring.  Training Camp will be the first, short glimpse before the season starts in just 3-quick weeks.  This coming season is sure to be exciting and will answer all of our current questions.  WIll Sidney Crosby be 100% recovered from the high ankle injury of last season?  Will Evgeni Malkin power back to the top of the points race after recharging his batteries in the off-season?  Will Jordan Staal ditch the sophomore slump and have a breakout year?  Will Marc-Andre Fleury shake off any early season jitters and will he be able to build on last year’s spectacular playoff run?  How will Miroslav Satan and Rusty Fedotenko fit in and produce?  Who will step up offensively on defense?  Will someone break into the lineup and be an enexpected force this season?  Who will be the enforcer?  Will the Penguins start slow and finish strong?  So many questions that will only be answerd in time!  Hockey is upon us!  Let’s Go Penguins!

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Laraque Ejected as Penguins Lose 4-3 to Flyers

The Pittsburgh Penguins lost to the Philadelphia Flyers on Thursday night by a score of 4-3.  For the Penguins, it was just their 2nd regulation loss since December 23rd.  Ty Conklin got the call for the Penguins and made 29-saves on 33 shots to move his record to 10-2-2.  The Penguins (27-18-4) have lost all 4-meetings with the Flyers this season, after sweeping them in 8-games last season.  With 59-points, the Penguins are still just 1-point behind the Atlantic Division leading Devils and Flyers (1st place tie).   

In the 1st period, Georges Laraque and Riley Cote mixed it up with a fight at 2:19 to set the tone for the game, with each player getting a 5-minute major.   Laraque pretty much beat the tar out of Cote.  The Flyers got on the scoreboard first on a goal by R.J. Umberger, his 9th of the season, at 9:34.  Jason Smith and Daniel Briere were credited with the assists.  The Penguins evened it up at 16:37 on a backhanded goal by Evgeni Malkin, his 27th of the year, after the Penguins went down 9-1 in shots earlier in the period.  Jarkko Ruutu and Darryl Sydor picked up the assists.  The Penguins were outshot 12-8 in the period and were 0-for-1 on the 30-seconds of power play time at the end of the period before Ryan Malone took a goaltender interference call with 4 seconds left in the period to even it up. 

In the 2nd, the Flyers scored just after the expiration of a power play advantage on a shot by Randy Jones at 12:59 into a yawning net.  Scott Hartnell and R.J. Umberger got the assists on the play.  The Penguins evened the score at 17:54 on a power play goal by Petr Sykora who redirected a hard shot by Sergei Gonchar.  Ryan Whitney picked up the other assist.  With 3 seconds left in the period, Georges Laraque was given a major penalty and a game misconduct for hitting Steve Downie from behind into the boards.  Downie went head first into the boards and lay motionless for a few moments, but was able to leave the ice under his own power.  He subsequently rejoined the game.  While the hit from behind was a penalty, it did not appear to be an intent to injure by Laraque. 

In the 3rd, the Flyers scored at 3:53 while still on the extended power play as James Vandermeer got his 3rd of the season from R.J. Umberger and Jeff Carter.  But the Penguins bounced right back on a quick short-handed goal by Ryan Whitney at 4:51 to tie it back up 3-3.  The Whitney goal, assisted by Jordan Staal and Ryan Malone, was reviewed by the league as Staal fell into the net and it came off from its mounts during the play.  The video review revealed that the puck had crossed the line before the net came off from its moorings, and it was ruled a goal.  The Flyers wasted no time before striking back and regaining the lead as Mike Knuble attacked the net and forced the puck past Conklin at 5:25.  Less than 10-seconds later, Ryan Stone and Steve Downie went for a fight, with Stone getting the worst of it after his jersey was pulled up over his head.  Downie may have won the fight, but took a 10-minute misconduct for failing to have his jersey tied down.  Perhaps it came undone when Laraque pasted him to the boards?  The Penguins were unable to find the back of the net again and the Flyers picked up the win 4-3.  The Penguins were outshot 12-11 in the 3rd, and were 1-for-2 on the penalty kill.  The Penguins did not get any man advantage in the 3rd. 

• VIDEO:  Video Highlights
• PHOTOS:  In-Game Photos
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Roster
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Game Summary
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Boxscore
• NHL OFFICIAL:  Play-by-Play

With the loss, the Flyers move into a tie for first place in the Atlantic with New Jersey with 59-points, just 1-point ahead of the Penguins.  New Jersey lost to Montreal to stay put with 59-points.  Elswehere around the Division, the Islanders lost to Boston and the Rangers beat Atlanta 2-1 in a shootout.

The game was the final Penguins’ outing before this weekend’s All-Star game in Atlanta.  Evgeni Malkin and Sergei Gonchar will make the trip to the All-Star game to represent the Penguins.  Kris Letang will be playing in the Young Stars game on Saturday.  The Penguins will return to action against the Devils on Tuesday in New Jersey.